<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>always by siaking</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26400697">always</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/siaking/pseuds/siaking'>siaking</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Gameboys (Web Series 2020)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Directed by Ivan Andrew Payawal, Episode Fix-it, Gameboys Episode 13, Gameboys is Godtier BL, Gameboys the series - Freeform, M/M, Pre-Canon, the fix it episode we fucking deserve</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:02:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,503</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26400697</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/siaking/pseuds/siaking</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In the wake of their intense fight, Cairo realises that this time it’s up to him to prove Gavreel is worth fighting for. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Or;</p>
<p>the fix-it fic we all deserve while waiting for the Gameboys Ep.13 finale.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gavreel Alarcon/Cairo Lazaro</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. realisation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=all+thirdwheels">all thirdwheels</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi babes! This is @aksmc29 from Twitter! I’m currently writing this fix-it fic and I’m uploading it in chapters. Here you go &lt;3</p>
<p>My Twitter: https://twitter.com/aksmc29<br/>YouTube Reactions channel: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCqYUc4IFzq698kkTZfS-djA</p>
<p> </p>
<p>P.S. If you want a Gameboys Season 2, please sign and share this petition: http://chng.it/6vyxzWN9</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Cairo paced around his bedroom, hands fiddling with the metal dog tag around his neck. He placed it on his palm and touched the top of the tag, feeling the cold metal against his fingers. Gavreel’s smiling face stared back at him, almost mockingly, reminding him of their fight.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It’d been two days since Cairo had heard from Gavreel. He spent the first few hours after the fight crying his eyes out, wishing he could take back everything he’d said in the midst of his blinding anger; wishing he could go back in time and stop himself before he aired his doubts over their relationship.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’d spent the last two days going over their every interaction with a fine tooth comb, trying to figure out where it all went wrong; trying to make sense of Gavreel’s frustrations.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Because while Cairo had been throwing around thoughtless statements as a defensive mechanism - Gavreel had said those things from a place of honesty and vulnerability. He truly believed Cairo didn’t appreciate his efforts nor acknowledge his feelings.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In fairness, Gavreel was right.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo had been holding back unintentionally. When he looked back on their relationship, he could understand where Gavreel’s insecurities stemmed from. Instead of confronting the obvious turmoil he was going through because of the looming departure that would break them both, he chose to brush it off as a joke and ignore it in favour of other, more pressing issues.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What he hadn’t realised at the time was that Gavreel’s fears ran deeper than the distance between them. Cairo still wasn’t sure what the root of the issue was for him, but he knew that if he avoided it any longer it would tear them apart - completely, this time.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He had to fix this. It was up to him to finally make a move and show Gavreel that he would fight twice as hard to keep them from crumbling. Pearl wouldn't always be there to mediate their fights, they’d have to learn to compromise and apologise on their own terms.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Once the initial anger had drained out of him, there was only the sensation of sinking below the surface. An emptiness in his life that all the games in the world couldn’t fill. Even now, he felt Gavreel’s absence like a sharp dagger in his heart - like an aching in his bones. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He owed Gavreel an apology, for making him feel like he had to hide parts of himself to fit into his life. Cairo loved Gavreel in whatever form he came, flaws and all - but, unfortunately, the message had gotten mixed up due to their miscommunication. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo sat on the edge of his bed and flipped the dog tag over on his palm, thumbing the edge of the engraving on the other side. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Cairo’s Angel,” he mumbled, rubbing his fingerprints off of the metal with the edge of his sleeve. He stared at the words and blinked back the tears that sprung to his eyes, building in intensity and pressure the more he tried to will them away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He missed Gavreel. Even a day without him and his lungs felt like they were missing oxygen, his heart felt alone and his inbox felt empty. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When Gavreel had asked if he was breaking up with him, something inside Cairo had snapped. He’d found a flaw in his argument, had found a reason to defend himself, to call Gavreel out for his unreasonable jealousy - and so he threw words carelessly, hoping one of them hit hard enough that it threw him off.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo didn’t believe that Gavreel thought of him as shallow enough to break up at the slightest hint of things going wrong. Conflict had to be a normal part of relationships, right? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After, he’d taken a breather to calm himself down and had let Gavreel’s words sink in. Had he been inconsiderate of his feelings up until now? Had he always made him feel under-appreciated? Had he expected too much?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He flipped the dog tag around and placed it around his neck, feeling the cool chain rest against his heated skin. Gavreel’s face smiled up at him from the place beside his heart, the very same grin that Cairo had fallen in love with from the moment he’d laid eyes on him - although he would never admit that to anyone but himself.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was time for Cairo to finally show Gavreel he was worth fighting for. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. confrontation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Cairo confronts Wesley.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Cairo wiped his palms on the front of his pants and let out a shaky breath, feeling his heart thud in his chest. He had to do this, he had to ask for his own peace of mind. If he didn’t ask now, he’d never be able to muster up the courage to do it again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At least Wesley wasn’t looking at him while he struggled to find the words. He remembered what his mom had said about initiating difficult conversations - that sometimes it was easier to just rip the bandaid off, let the words out and let others do with it what they may.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He took a deep breath. Wesley was saying something but Cairo couldn’t focus, not with the things he was bursting to say. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything else is already set up, so you’re good to go until then. I was thinking that when you come here to Bukidnon, we could—”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Wesley, I have something to ask,” Cairo interjected, reaching up subconsciously to fiddle with the dog tag around his neck. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Wesley raised an eyebrow and sat back, crossing his arms, the confusion clear in his expression. “Yes, Ssob?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo cringed internally at the nickname. He couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something more being implied every time Wesley called him by their childhood name. He hadn’t really paid attention to it until Gavreel pointed it out, and now he couldn’t stop </span>
  <em>
    <span>hearing</span>
  </em>
  <span> it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I just, uhm- I was wondering…” he trailed off, unable to find the words.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Wesley moved closer to the camera and looked at him. “Hm, what is it?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo gulped. He licked his lips, his throat suddenly dry. “Well, Gav thinks you… have feelings for me. You don’t though, right? I told him that there’s no way you like me as more than a friend but he still thinks you do.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He looked up at Wesley, who was staring at him, almost unnervingly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach. He knew that expression. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I do,” Wesley said, his face carefully masked with indifference. “I do have feelings for you, Cairo. I like you. I’ve liked you since we were kids and didn’t know what love was.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo suppressed the feeling of betrayal that rose within him. It was unfair for him to blame Wesley for having feelings for him. “So Gav </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> right…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A muscle in Wesley’s jaw twitched. His gaze turned cold. “You know what? That’s your problem Cairo, it’s always ‘Gav this’ and ‘Gav that’ with you nowadays. It almost feels like the boy I knew from the past no longer even exists.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo reeled back as if he’d been slapped. The words shook him to the core. “Huh?” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Is he hurting you, Cai? Did he do something? Because you’ve changed.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What are you talking about?” Cairo could feel himself getting angry. He didn’t understand why Wesley was asking him these questions. He couldn’t understand </span>
  <em>
    <span>why </span>
  </em>
  <span>Wesley was implying that Gavreel was a bad boyfriend - that he would hurt him. “Stop, Wesley, you’re not making any sense. Just stop. Please.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“No, Cairo, you stop. What happened to you?” Wesley was looking at him now with a touch of disgust on his face. “You were never this- this preoccupied with someone who you haven’t even known for long. LDR won’t work, trust me, I don’t know how he convinced you of that. You deserve better.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was a headache forming behind his temples. Cairo squeezed his eyes shut and wished he could end the call. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t like you, Wesley. And I need to know that you’ll be okay if we stay friends. If not, then I can’t keep talking to you like this.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess this is goodbye then,” Wesley muttered, his voice hard and unforgiving. “Trust me Cairo, whatever he’s told you, it’s not going to work.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cairo couldn’t handle this. It felt all too familiar. He remembered Risa’s face when he broke her heart, remembered the spark of defiance in her eyes that triggered an onslaught of events he wasn’t prepared for. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Goodbye Wes,” he whispered before ending the call, his anger draining out of him like an unplugged sink filled to the brim with water.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was only then that he realised he was shaking, that he felt the anxiety uncurl in his stomach. Gavreel had been right and Cairo had accused him of being insecure - as if his fears were not valid, when Wesley had just confirmed it with his actions.</span>
</p>
<p><br/>Everything would be okay. It had to be, because if it wasn’t, then Cairo wasn’t sure what to do with himself. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>My Twitter: https://twitter.com/aksmc29<br/>YouTube Reactions channel: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCqYUc4IFzq698kkTZfS-djA</p>
<p>P.S. If you want a Gameboys Season 2, please sign and share this petition: http://chng.it/6vyxzWN9</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>